Raw Redemption
by Quinzeela
Summary: Lacie isn't the luckiest of people as she is handed over to a group of Snatchers in a bid to keep her safe. Scabior/OC with a dash of Draco. Rated for swearing and mature situations.
1. Chapter 1

Fear had spread through the Wizarding community. No one knew what to believe anymore but one thing that itched at the back of their minds was that the darkness was rising and they could no longer deny it. The death of the Minister of Magic was when the real fear started and 'blood traitors' and 'mudbloods' alike were sent to the ministry for questioning.

Lacie Horncroft had gone back to her home on the outskirts of London after the death of her headmaster. Her parents had welcomed her home with tear filled eyes immediately firing questions at her. Their world was changing and the families' choices made life dangerous. It was widely known amongst the purebloods that the Horncroft family were traitors, even more so now that Lacie had been recognised to socialise with the golden trio.

* * *

Lacie had sat quietly on her bed after her parents had warned her that someone may come after them during the next few months but still, they refused to run like common criminals. They had nothing to hide, they were purebloods. Though Lacie had tried to get them to leave their home she had failed, she knew the severity of what others thought of her family, she knew what people said about them but still her parents wouldn't listen. It was only a matter of time until they came for them.

Lacie lay back on her bed as she practiced charms, smiling slightly as a couple of small yellow birds flew around her room tweeting softly as they went. Her father was in the kitchen cooking tea whilst her mother sat on the phone to one of her friends. Everything had been calm until Lacie heard several loud cracks from outside of her house.

She sat up abruptly when she heard a crash as the front door slammed into the hallway with a powerful force. She jumped to her feet and ran to the banister rail and peered over with widened eyes.  
"Get her!" One of the men ordered another when they both saw the seventeen year old. A jinx was thrown at her but she narrowly missed it as her mother grabbed her from behind and pulled her back into her bedroom.

"Oh Lacie! I'm so sorry!" Her mother gushed out with tear filled eyes as she tried to barricade the door. They could both hear bangs from outside of the door as well as downstairs. Lacie was in shock. She stood in the middle of her room just staring at her mother as she tried her best to stop the door from opening with protective spells.

"Lacie!" She suddenly snapped out of it and looked her mother in the eyes, "Disapparate! Go somewhere they won't find you," That's when Lacie understood; Snatchers. She didn't understand how they'd found them so suddenly though, it can't have been luck that they'd just happened to apparate outside of their house.

"What about you and dad?" Lacie yelled out as her mother left the door and thrust her daughter's wand into her hand.

"We'll find you once you're safe, don't worry about us," She kissed Lacie's forehead and hugged her tightly, "We both love you so much Lacie."

"I love you too," She uttered before her mother released her and then moved closer to the door again.

"Now go!" Lacie didn't need to be told again as she disapparated with a sharp crack.

* * *

In the rush of everything Lacie had made several mistakes; all she had taken with her was her wand and anything that was already on her person. This meant that when she had landed barefoot in the forest that she had disapparated to Lacie immediately gasped out in agony of being stabbed in the foot by the sharp twigs and such surrounding her.

Lacie knew the area well as she'd been here many times with her father in the breaks between Hogwarts. They both used to settle by the river nearby and he'd fish whilst she draw anything and everything. Immediately she set off the short distance to the river whilst being careful where she stood as her foot started to bleed. She didn't know what to do, she was isolated.

Lacie sat at the bottom of a large tree trunk, staring at the moons reflection in the river before her. She'd created bandages using a spell and had wrapped her foot tightly in them to protect the cut and stop it from bleeding. Lacie couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen now. She couldn't go back home and her parents were gone indefinitely, she didn't even know if they were still alive. What would those snatchers have done if they'd caught them? Lacie didn't know too much about her situation at hand and how much danger she was in - she didn't know about how the taboo of speaking the dark lord's name had become even worse now.

She didn't know what to do, hunger was eating at her already but she had no means of food. She also tried her hardest not to sleep as the night blanketed the forest. She didn't feel safe, anyone or anything could've been lurking behind her between the trees and undergrowth. As the hours passed however, her head began to droop and she couldn't help but rest her eyes every few minutes until she didn't open them again and instead fell into a deep sleep. She was going to have to think of a plan once she awoke.

* * *

He grimaced as the woman before he and his father screamed out in agony before falling to her knees in a twisting pain. She was begging him, begging him to make it stop. Crying out that he was better than his father which only made everything worse for herself. He looked to his father and saw the sadistic grin and concentration on his face and immediately knew he was going to milk this for what it was worth.

"Lucius that's enough," Immediately his father stopped and looked up to the even colder man coming towards them through the door. "We haven't got time, finish her off Draco." He looked up with horrified eyes but didn't say a word.

"Come on Draco, do as he says," Lucius muttered worriedly into his sons ear. Draco pulled out his wand and with a shaky hand pointed it at the woman he'd known since he was eleven as she laid so close to death.

"Avada kadavra," He muttered, cringing as she twitched once more and then she was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Lacie awoke with a sudden start, her chest heaving under the cold sweat covering her body. She was freezing in the tank top and jeans that she wore but it wasn't like she had known that she would be sleeping in a forest when she'd got dressed the previous day. She'd dreamt of her parents and their possible fate if they'd been caught and it'd shook her completely.

She pulled herself to her feet with the help of the tree trunk, grimacing as she put weight on her bandaged foot. Lacie shivered and wrapped her arms tightly around herself as she limped over to the water's edge. It was still early and the sun had only just risen.

"Shit," She moaned out as she sat and peeled the bandage slowly from her foot. The pain was sharp and Lacie grimaced as she looked down at the wound that was already becoming infected. It was a risk considering she knew she had to stay away from busy streets but she needed to go to Diagon Alley. She was going to leave as soon as the sun had risen slightly higher in the morning sky. If Lacie had thought it through though, she would've realised that it would've been safer for her to just blend in around midday instead of trying to sneak around. Through the stinging pain of her foot and the constant worry about her parents, she couldn't help but wonder where Ron, or Luna, or even Draco was during these dark times.

* * *

Diagon Alley had never looked so haunted before as Lacie glanced each way down the coble road as she left the alleyway she'd apparated into. A lot of the shops had closed but the few that remained open had customers already entering even at such an early time.

Gringotts was where the majority of people were it seemed though, pulling out their savings whilst they still had access as after all, the ministry wasn't safe anymore so who knew how long it would be until the great Wizarding bank would be taken under control. Lacie didn't plan to do this though, no, she only wanted to carry on her however much she needed at that time. She didn't want to draw too much attention to herself - well as much attention as she could avoid anyway seeing as she was still walking shoeless. Lacie pulled the heavy key from around her neck as she entered Gringotts. It'd been a precaution that her parents had forced her to take and though she'd hated it at the beginning, she was now grateful.

Lacie kept her head low as she made her way over to Slug and Jiggers Apothecary, entering the shop with a small sigh of relief. The familiar putrid smell immediately hit her but she soon got used to it as she looked around. She had absolutely no idea what she was really looking for and jumped slightly when a voice entered from behind her.

"Is there anything that I can help you with dear?" Lacie's heart raced until she turned and saw an elderly man stood near the counter, a warm smile on his face.

In her many years at Hogwarts Lacie had visited the apothecary many times when in need of supplies for her potions that she was so passionate with. It's just a shame that when it came to it her head was so jumbled with fear that she couldn't remember the ingredients exactly for a healing potion.

"I-uh," Lacie stumbled on her words, "I just need something for my foot." The elderly man nodded slightly and beckoned her to an old chair by the side of the counter. Lacie of course recognised the man and didn't worry too much about trusting him as his frail old face smiled kindly at her.

"Mind if I take a look?" Lacie still hesitated a little before limping slightly over to the old chair and taking a seat.

"Now where are your shoes child?" He asked aghast as he knelt in front of her, taking her bandaged foot in his skilled hands.

"I had to leave quickly, I didn't get the chance to grab them," Lacie uttered carefully, not truly knowing what side he was on during these darker times.

"Oh," He frowned slightly and started to peel away her bandages, "I understand. It's not right all of this is it," He mumbled more to himself than Lacie, "and to think that Potter boy had been telling the truth all along - my goodness!" Lacie jumped as he suddenly exclaimed, his grip tightening on her foot suddenly.

"What?" She asked panicked, "What is it?" The old man quickly changed his expression from shock to a forced smile.

"Nothing, nothing. I'm, uhm, just going to make some quick potions for you okay, you stay right there," Lacie watched in surprise as he suddenly stood and slowly grabbed the ingredients he'd need before setting up three cauldrons on the counter and then quickly working with skilled fingers, all the while mumbling to himself. Lacie watched slightly worried but still not wanting to look at the cut in case it was actually as bad as his reaction had said it was.

After fifteen minutes he walked back over, three vials in his hand all of which emitting different pleasant smells.

"Right," He knelt back in front of her and held each up in turn, "the blue one you are to apply first to get rid of the infection, then you use the clear one next to help heal the wound and then use the cloudy white one to protect it. Don't use too much, just dab some onto a clean cloth and then dab on your foot one after another. Once a day should do it and with clean bandages each time you should be fine." Lacie nodded in response and watched as he applied each to her foot, the first making her hiss and squirm in discomfort, the second she barely felt and then the last left a soft, pleasant tingling sensation behind. Lacie said her thanks as he conjured and secured her new bandage and then passed her the three vials.

"Thank you," She said softly as she stood carefully and pulled the money from her pocket.

"Try and get some shoes dear," Were the man's last words before he bid her the best of luck and then watched her leave.

* * *

Lacie's foot was easier to walk on that was for sure but at the rate of which the bandages were getting dirty again she couldn't help but groan as she headed for the Leaky Cauldron. The small vials clinked in her pocket against one another whilst she thought about where the cheapest place nearest the London pub was that sold shoes. She kept her head down subconsciously, her dark hair falling over her eyes again, those eyes that then widened in surprise as someone gripped her arm suddenly, stopping her from walking any further.

"Come on love, we 'aven't got all day," Lacie turned to face the man before her and tried to hide the sudden terror in her eyes. He still noticed however how her eyes fell to the red band on his arm. Snatchers.

"What's ya name?" He asked, still holding a tight grip on her arm, looking quite bored with the whole ordeal though still, she noticed a slight knowing smile quirking in the corner of his mouth. Lacie couldn't find her voice, she didn't want to in fact. She looked at the five of them before her, Scabior still clutching her arm whilst the other closest to them was Greyback.

"Come on! Name!" He exclaimed in exasperation. Lacie struck him by surprise as she quickly raised her fist and punched him square in the face. In the initial surprise he released her other arm, giving Lacie the chance to run.

She ignored the pain of her foot as it hammered against the uneven cobble and she ran as fast as she could back into Diagon Alley and away from those five men. She could hear their yelling until it slowly died down, she just needed somewhere to safely disapparate from now, somewhere out of site so that no one could follow her path. Lacie glanced behind her to see that they weren't there so she quickly veered off into an alley, yelping in surprise when she collided with a firm chest. Scabior growled slightly and took a hold of her shoulders whilst she was still in shock. She swore as her back crashed into the rough brick, scratching at her skin and slightly winding her.

"I won't ask again love, name!" He growled, pulling his wand out and digging it into her throat. Greyback and the three others appeared behind Scabior, one of the scruffier men pulling out a small book with a sadistic grin. Scabior had her.

"Lacie Horncroft," She closed her eyes briefly in fear, feeling like she'd secured her fate now. The man with the book grinned widely, tapping at the page and then showing it to Scabior.

"Oh and would you look at tha'! You're one of those at the top of my list. No wonder you ran beau'iful," Scabior leaned into her and breathed in her scent, his eyes rolling back in euphoria.

"Scabior!" he merely glanced up, pleasure still evident in his eyes.

"Mr Malfoy," Scabior greeted with a slightly drunken grin, amused by his presence. Lacie stood completely tense as she watched Draco stride into the group, fury in his eyes as he glared at Scabior. She could still feel his breath on her neck but she dared not to move as she stood plastered to the wall.

"What the hell are you doing?" Draco hissed grabbing Scabior and roughly pulling him from her so that he was directly stood in front of him instead.

"It's my job to snatch 'em Draco, you know that," Scabior uttered amused.

"She's a pureblood, a Slytherin!"

"She's a blood traitor," Snarled Greyback.

"And we're taking 'er to the ministry," Scabior added, amusement still quirking at his lips as his hand went to her arm, gripping it as if he were about to disapparated.

"No!" Draco shouted out in alarm, raising his wand, "Don't you dare."

"It's my job lad," Scabior said with a smirk. "I need money as much as the next wizard."

"Well I'll give you what they were paying you, to not snatch her," Lacie stared at Draco with widened eyes,

"Ah ah ah," Scabior shook his head, amused by the youngest Malfoy. "She's a blood traitor, her families one of those at the top of the list, if we don't take 'er then someone else will."

"I'll pay you double what they'd give you if you'll just keep her with you then, keep her safe,"

"Double won't cut it."

"Name your price then!"

"Double the galleon… each day."

"How am I supposed to afford that in the long run you thieving bastard," Draco growled.

"Double the gold a week then which is really a bargain if you think about it."

"Fine. But if I find out you've harmed her I'll kill you."

"And if the Dark Lord finds out about all of this?"

"The truth… I-I'll take my punishment." Draco stuttered out, closing his eyes briefly.

"You're foolish lad. All this to save a blood traitor."

"Do we have a deal?" Draco insisted, narrowing his eyes at Scabior.

"Yes." Draco hadn't made eye contact with Lacie at all, just leaving her to stand confused against the wall, shivering and shoeless.

"You can't be serious?" Greyback growled, having stayed silent throughout the whole ordeal. Scabior spun around and glared at him, lowering his voice so that Draco couldn't hear his hisses.

"Look we hand 'er over to the ministry now, we get twenty-five galleons, that's it. If we keep her, we get double tha' for every week she's with us. If you hadn't noticed Greyback we 'aven't had many snatches recently - we need the money," Greyback grunted and turned his eyes to stare at Lacie's shaking form.

"Scabior?" Draco questioned with a glare.

"We 'ave a deal, now go," Scabior uttered and pulled Lacie roughly from the wall, grabbing her forearm and turning to his snatchers, "Back to camp."


	3. Chapter 3

Lacie moaned again as she landed in a forest, twigs stabbing at her, agitating her bandaged foot. Scabior released her arm and didn't even give her another look as he stalked towards one of the tents, briefly waving an arm back at Lacie.

"Search her," He commanded but stopped walking as soon as Greyback stepped forward, an eager grin on his face, "Not you, Castor."

Lacie's eyes widened as another of his men then came towards her, searching her body quite roughly whilst Scabior entered his tent. Castor's skin was slightly tanned like the other snatchers suggesting they'd been in the forest snatching over the summer months that were now slowly fading to autumn. His short brown hair and his clothes seemed cleaner than would've been expected though making Lacie wonder if they hadn't camped in the forest the whole time. Castor's heavy jacket was covered in scrapes and small tears she noticed as he patted down her sides, stopping as he got to her pockets.

"Empty them," He spoke, his voice higher pitched than Lacie had expected from the snatcher. She did as she was told and Lacie produced the three potions from Slug and Jiggers Apothecary, the muggle money she'd got from Gringotts, a couple of coins and her wand.

"Boss!" Castor called out and Scabior appeared again from the tent, his leather jacket having been left inside.

"What?" He asked harshly, stepping towards the two as the others watched on curiously. Castor handed Lacie's few belongings to Scabior who looked at the vials curiously. He uncorked the blue potion and sniffed at its contents before going to pour it on the ground.

"No!" Lacie exclaimed, going to reach forward only for Greyback to grab her suddenly from behind. The camp fell silent, curiosity surging through them all. "I need them."

"What are they? And don't you dare lie to me, Greyback can easily rip you to shreds if I allow 'im," Greyback curled his lip slightly at this, not enjoying being ordered around by a mere wizard such as Scabior.

"They're just for my foot," Scabior glanced at her bandaged foot and narrowed his eyes slightly before pocketing the vials as well as her money. "You're not going to need this either," he muttered as he hid her wand and pulled out his own, aiming it at her hands that were held tightly by her sides until Scabior muttered a spell that caused her wrists and ankles to be bound tightly with rope. Lacie would've fallen if it hadn't been for Greyback still digging his claw like fingers into her skin.

"Stick 'er by the log," Scabior ordered and watched as Greyback lifted her slightly and then dropped her onto the ground causing her legs to painfully buckle and for her to fall onto her back. Scabior watched as she struggled and moved so that she was laid on her side, her head still on the floor and her back facing Scabior's men.

"Greyback, Castor, Arsenius, we're searching the forest. Balfour watch the girl," Scabior commanded and each of them did as they were told, Balfour walking towards the log where Lacie had silent tears rolling down her cheeks and onto the mud. The snatcher had shaggy dirty blonde hair and was only in the job for the money, much like most of the other snatchers. He even had a family back at home and this was his way of keeping them safe.

"How old are you?" He asked her once he knew the others were at a distance away from the camp. Lacie didn't reply, stiffening at his voice. "I'm only trying to make an effort," he added as he sat on one of the two logs near her.

"Seventeen," she spoke softly and Balfour watched as she moved slightly to try and get more comfortable, he laughed before getting up and stepping over to her. Lacie gave a scared squeak but Balfour merely helped her into a sitting position and she brought her knees up to her chest, eyeing the snatcher suspiciously as he went and sat back down.

"Where are your parents then?" He asked, just wanting to try and make some sort of conversation.

"Snatched." Balfour merely nodded.

* * *

Lacie had fallen asleep by the time the others came back to camp. She leant uncomfortably against one of the logs with her head rested against the rough bark. Night had fallen and though the fire was lit, Lacie still shivered in her sleep not really benefiting from the flames that licked and danced in the moonlight.

"Get any?" Balfour called out as he heard several men's footsteps as they returned.

"One young guy, that's it."

"Remember when we used to get like three every time we went out Scabs?" Arsenius murmured with a sigh, sitting on the log next to Balfour. Arsenius' hair was thin and greasy, falling to his shoulders, framing his hollow face as he stared into the fire thinking.

"Mm, 'ow long she been asleep?" Scabior asked Balfour as Castor pulled out a pan and some of the rations they had from a bag.

"Couple of hours," He nodded before walking over to her, prodding her in her side with his boot until she stirred. She moaned slightly in discomfort before she found her bearings and stilled. Looking up she met Scabior's cold eyes are he stared down at her.

"Hungry?" She gave a slight nod and he turned to give orders to Castor before flicking his wand at Lacie, making her jump as the coarse ropes disappeared from her wrists and ankles. She rubbed at the red skin and hissed slightly at the small cuts that had been made.

* * *

_Just a short/quick update. Thank you to snatchmescabior for reviewing and those that are following this. I'll update again soon :)_


	4. Chapter 4

Lacie could feel eyes on her as Scabior sat on the second log whilst Greyback took to stalking the perimeter of the camp.

"He seems more agitated than usual," Balfour commented, gesturing towards Greyback and then sniffing the air as Castor stirred whatever he was cooking in the pot.

"I wouldn't let 'im 'ave the snatch - he doesn't care that if he'd ripped into the guy, the rest of us wouldn't 'ave eaten," Lacie brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them to try and keep warm. She rubbed her arms, visibly shivering making Scabior glance down at her with a smirk.

"Just sit on the log, love," She hesitated before shakily pulling herself to her feet and sitting as far away as she could from Scabior making he and his men laugh lowly. "Don't be stupid," Scabior grabbed Lacie by the waist and pulled her into his lap causing her to squeak out in surprise. She went to get back up again but Scabior dug his fingers into her hips causing pain to shoot through her.

"Don't you dare move," he growled, suddenly the playful tone disappearing and she stilled, her breathing shallow. She couldn't help but wonder why Scabior was the leader, surely Greyback was the best hunter. She had heard of him from Harry and to be honest she was terrified to be in his presence more than any of the others.

Scabior could feel her trembling very slightly beneath his touch. Like before in Diagon Alley, he leant into her hair and inhaled. Lacie stiffened and shivered as he pushed her hair over one shoulder, revealing her neck. Terror shot through her as his lips ghosted over her skin only to suddenly pull back when Castor cleared his throat, nodding slightly to the two tin dishes he was holding out to them. She took one with shaking hands whilst Scabior grabbed his own. He shifted her to one knee and immediately dug in. Lacie looked down at the food and grimaced slightly - it had no immediately recognisable ingredients but it smelt like it could be barely edible.

"You'll get used to it," Balfour spoke when he noticed her eyeing the brown watery broth with lumps of what she could only guess were meat and vegetables.

"Yeah, it's nutritional, that's all that matters really," Castor commented as he sat on the log next to Scabior and Lacie, his own tin bowl in his hands. Lacie braced herself as she sipped a bit, almost gagging at the overpowering taste. She forced herself to carry on eating though, knowing that she would regret it when she was starving later on.

* * *

With a clatter Scabior threw his spoon and empty tin to the floor before yelling at Greyback to come over.

"Right, I wanna set summit straight," He started as Greyback stood behind Balfour, listening with a grunt. Lacie felt incredibly self-conscious and though she knew that they were all looking past her and at Scabior, she didn't like that she was still perched on his knee like some doll.

"I wanna make it clear that if any of you touch her in any way at all without my permission, you'll end up like Markus did, got it?" A few of them murmured a yes whilst Greyback just stared unnervingly at her making her feel incredibly vulnerable under his gaze.

"She'll be stayin' in my tent," He added and Lacie cringed as she heard one of his men snigger.

"And as for you," Scabior turned her slightly so that she could look at him whilst she was still sat on his knee, the closeness of it all scaring her, "if you ever try and run away love, you'll regret it." Lacie nodded before hastily turning back to the fire.

"Is that all Scabior?" One of his men asked and when he nodded Greyback stalked off again and Arsenius brought up something that had been playing on all of their minds.

"'Ow do you know Draco then?" Lacie looked up in surprise as he addressed her and she stumbled over her words slightly, hoping not to say the wrong thing.

"We're in the same year and house at Hogwarts."

"Oh yes! I'd forgotten about that poppet! We 'ave a little Slytherin with us, don't we," Scabior said with a grin, his fingers going back to her hips and gripping her again. "You don't seem like one though, you're just a bit too docile."

"I know," Lacie mumbled, thinking back to the years at Hogwarts that she'd spent alone because of how her house hadn't wanted anything to do with her.

"Must be more than that though. He wouldn't have paid that much otherwise," Castor commented, all of them looking at her curiously again.

"No, that's it," Lacie insisted, shaking her head slightly and taking to fiddling with her fingers. She didn't want to tell them as why did they need to know, but still, Lacie was curious herself as to why Draco tried to save her; though Lacie felt like she might've actually been safer at the ministry than with a bunch of murderous men and a werewolf.

"Who is standing watch tonight?" Scabior asked after he'd yawned and stood, his hands on Lacie's hips as he lifted her to her own feet with him.

"I will," Balfour spoke out and Scabior nodded before turning towards his tent, stopping when he realised Lacie wasn't following.

"Come on, girl," He uttered impatiently, resisting a smirk as Lacie's eyes widened slightly and she slowly walked after him, entering the tent behind him.

* * *

Lacie looked around herself, the tent was quaint and simple with a couple of trinkets here and there; it had been the snatcher's home for the past months.

"I don't believe you," Lacie turned and looked at Scabior who had pulled off his military style jacket and was starting to undo the buttons of his black shirt. Lacie looked away immediately, a blush rising to her cheeks. "Draco doesn't care about anyone but 'imself yet he was willing to pay to keep you from the ministry? It doesn't add up with what you say."

"He doesn't care about me," She said softly, jumping when she suddenly felt a calloused hand grip her shoulder, spinning her around to face him.

"Don't lie to me," He growled, stepping towards her until her back hit one of the large wooden posts that supported the tent. Her eyes widened, her body trembling. "Or am I going to 'ave to teach you that lesson?" Lacie shook her head quickly.

"I- uh- we- we were together - well we weren't but-" Lacie stumbled over her words not knowing what to say or how to explain it. Scabior's hand went to her throat pressing slightly as a warning for her to get her story straight, "We were together. But it was a bet. He used me and it was all a lie, everyone knew but me," She quickly squeaked out but Scabior carried on pressing into her throat anyway, cutting off her air supply, making her eyes widen further in panic. Lacie tried to scratch at his hand to pull it away but she wasn't strong enough as tears filled her eyes and started to roll down her cheeks. Scabior scoffed at her as he released her throat and watched as she slid down the post to the floor. She brought her hands up to her neck and coughed as she tried to get air back into her lungs.

"Sleep with me or on the floor, I don't care," Scabior spoke and walked away from her towards the simple double bed, undoing his plaid trousers as he went. Lacie didn't move, just held her knees to her chest and sobbed quietly, wishing that she could be back at home in the comfort of her own room.

"Suit yourself," Scabior climbed into his bed and pointed his wand at the one bulb that hung in the tent. "Nox."


	5. Chapter 5

It was pitch black when Lacie woke up, still in the same position at the bottom of the post. Her skin was as cold as ice and she moaned as her joints all cracked and ached as she got to her feet. Lacie paced for a second or two, wrapping her arms around herself to try and warm herself up. She wished that she knew what time it was, or how long she'd slept for but instead she just paced, eyeing Scabior as he slept. Her teeth chattered and her skin prickled as she saw him sleeping peacefully, no expression on his face at all. Her eyes grew accustomed to the lack of light and she looked around the room before she spotted his clothes hanging from a hook on one of the wooden posts.

Lacie crept over to them, eyeing the thick leather of his coat with a longing look. She touched the fabric before glancing back at Scabior and then carefully pulling the coat off of its hook. She thought of her sore throat as she pulled on the coat, relishing in the warmth that it brought to her body but knowing that she'd have to wake before him to put it back. He was unpredictable and she didn't want to get on the wrong side of him anymore than she already had. She paused though as she wrapped the coat tightly around herself.

A musty smell of sweat, faded cologne and something else met her nose causing her eyes to become heavy. In all it wasn't a strong or unpleasant scent but it was different to what she had been expecting and it lulled her slightly. Lacie looked to the bed with heavy eyes, there was a space there that she could easily have fit into and become even warmer but again, she didn't want to wake after Scabior as she was afraid of the consequences.

Pulling back the covers slightly, she couldn't understand why she suddenly thought it would be a good idea. Scabior didn't move or make a sound though so she carefully slipped in and turned her back to him. She wrapped the leather coat around herself and then pulled the cover tightly to her body as well, sighing contently as she felt sleep washing over her.

* * *

Scabior awoke early the next morning as he always did. He stretched slightly before suddenly stilling as he noticed her scent was closer than it had been the previous night. Turning over he smirked to himself when he saw the back of Lacie's head before moving closer to her under the covers, wrapping an arm around her waist as he spooned her. Curiosity took over him as he noticed that she was also wrapped in his coat but the thought soon left him as he closed his eyes, inhaling her sweet smell.

Arousal spread through him like a fire just as it had done on their first encounter in Diagon Alley. There was something about her, something about the aroma that clung to her. It wasn't as strong as some people's that he had met but still, it was stronger than most that he'd come across and there was something just so appealing about it.

He held her tightly and closed his eyes, inhaling deeply. Scabior's eyebrows furrowed as she tried to pull away from him in her sleep. He pushed himself up slightly so that he could see her better, moving her hair from her neck gently and grazing her skin with his calloused fingertips. She stirred and Scabior found himself studying her features as her eyes fluttered open, glancing around tiredly before she realised where she still was and what it was she could feel in her lower back.

"Scabior," She gasped in surprise scrambling as she pulled herself from the bed, almost landing face first on the floor. She backed away from the bed, "I'm sorry, I was just so cold," she turned to Scabior and expected to see anger in his eyes but all she could see was amusement.

"I did say you could sleep in the bed love," He uttered, pulling himself up. She found herself looking anywhere but his person as he walked towards her, standing as close as he could to her. He leant towards her ear, his breath tickling it as he spoke. "Next time ask before you take my clothes though." Lacie blushed, immediately shrugging off Scabior's coat as he stepped away from her and towards the rest of his clothes.

Lacie shivered as she went back to the bed, sitting on the edge of it and lying Scabior's coat next to her. She pulled her legs up, holding them to her chest as she pulled the duvet around herself slightly.

"Scabior?" She uttered, glancing up at him to find him doing his belt up. "I- uh, can I-"

"Spit it out love," He uttered, slightly amused as he turned to her. He pulled his shirt on and looked to her expectantly as he did up the buttons.

"Can I have the vials you took from me please?" Lacie nervously pushed her hair behind her ear.

"No."

"I need them for my foot," Scabior let out a bark of laughter, raising his eyebrows at her.

"Oh yeah? Show me then." He smirked as he walked over to her, his shirt half unbuttoned. He thought she would falter but no, she began to unwrap the bandage on her foot and he was surprised to see the obviously infected wound on her sole.

Lacie held her knee up to her chest, and her hand cradling her foot slightly.

"'Fine, let me," He muttered as he knelt at the edge of the bed. Scabior took her foot into his hands and looked at the wound. He noticed how dirty it was - but then again he noted that she'd been running around the forest and Diagon Alley barefoot so it was to be expected really.

"You need to dab it with the blue one, the clear and then the cloudy white one," Lacie instructed, feeling highly embarrassed at the situation. She was quite surprised as Scabior actually listened to her though, doing as she said without any other retorts.

"Accio cloth," She heard him utter before grabbing the white cloth that flew at him from one of the units in the tent and applying some of the first potion to it. Scabior's fingers were calloused and dirty but he worked quickly and precisely, applying the potions and grinning slightly at her pained hisses when he applied the first.

"Ferula," He uttered and secured the bandages tightly around her foot as he finished.

"Thank you," She said softly as Scabior stood again. He ignored her thanks and so she pushed herself back on the bed and went back to staring off into space, jumping as a pair or old black boots much like Scabior's and a moth-bitten old pair of socks landed on the bed in front of her.

"Wear 'em," he muttered before grabbing his coat from the bed and shrugging it on and leaving without another word.

Lacie stared after him in surprise. He reminded her a little bit of Draco, the way he would stride in, all eyes on him, with an air of confidence and importance. She despised him already. His mood swings were already grating on her, his stubble on his chin was irritating to see, his unruly hair made her want to yank a brush through it, the way he spoke to her like he owned her made her want to punch him, his aroma made her stomach lurch… she stopped at that thought though. She pushed it far from her mind as she realised that she had felt that lurching before, immediately wanting to scold herself for her naivety. Lacie glared after him, anger surging through her at the situation that she was in. Draco was fantastic at throwing her into the worst of situations.

Eventually she pulled herself from her thoughts, pulling the socks and boots on and zipping them up. She found them a little bit too big but they were still comfortable as she tied them tightly. Pulling herself to her feet she limped over to the tents entrance. Pressing her ear against the material she tried to listen to see if there were any snatchers nearby but silence met her. Peeking out of the flaps she saw nobody in her direct line of vision. She frowned slightly, Scabior had only left the tent ten minutes previously, had they just left her this time? Lacie stepped out, walking back over to the fire-pit, glancing around herself in glee when she found that she was alone. She eagerly eyed the forest, edging towards it until laughter rang out behind her.

"I wouldn't if I was you, he'd kill both of us," Her heart leapt into her throat as she spun around to find Castor standing behind her, several bits of wood in his arms.

"I- I wasn't going to do anything," She uttered even though she knew she wasn't being incredibly convincing. Castor raised his eyebrows.

"Right," He uttered, walking past her to the fire-pit and dumping the wood in it. He squinted through the sunlight at her as she just stood there, still shocked at his sudden presence. "You hungry?" She snapped out of her thoughts, nodding slightly as she went over to where Castor had sat himself down on one of the logs around the unlit fire. Lacie watched as he rummaged through a rucksack, finally producing a fairly decent sized chunk of bread. He passed it to her and she thanked him, only nibbling at it to make it last longer.

"It's not much but we haven't had much money recently." He uttered. She merely nodded, thinking that she would rather die than give sympathy to a snatcher – she would eat everything they had just to spite them if she could.

"Where are the others?" Castor had started to clean the pots from the previous night, glancing up at Lacie every couple of minutes.

"They're out snatching." Lacie couldn't help but frown slightly at the fact that Scabior had left her untied this time – not that she wasn't thankful, she just couldn't seem to fathom the man.

"How old are you then?"

"Seventeen," She uttered, accepting the cup from Castor that he had filled with water from his wand for her. "I'll be eighteen in a couple of months."

"You're still at Hogwarts right?"

"Meant to be going into my seventh year in a couple of weeks, yeah."

"What were you studying?" He questioned, looking to her with real interest as he placed one of the pots down for a second.

"Potions, transfiguration, charms and herbology."

"Smart girl then?"

"I guess." The two fell silent as Lacie finished off her bread, finding a question itching inside of her but she wasn't sure how to ask without seeming too interested in the snatchers.

"How… how old are you all?" She asked unsurely.

"I'm twenty-three, Scabior's twenty-six, Arsenius is twenty-seven and Balfour is thirty-five… not too sure about Fenrir."

"Oh, okay," She merely uttered. Castor surprised her, he didn't really seem like the other snatchers on the surface but then she had only seen one side of the man. The previous day he had done quite well in following Scabior's orders to search her so she supposed he was just a soldier type. She definitely wasn't going to get to know him either way.

"I'm going to just go back in there," Lacie spoke awkwardly, standing from the log. "Thanks for the food." She uttered before stepping away from him, heading back to Scabior's tent. She hated the site of the tent but she knew she was going to have to get used to it - she couldn't imagine that her stay there was going to be short lived.

Pushing back the flaps again she entered the tent, a faint smell of dirt, sweat and Scabior hitting her as she entered. She made a beeline for the bed, pulling off her boots as soon as she sat down. She sighed and pushed herself back, curling into the covers. That's when she couldn't stop herself; her mind wandered to her friends, to her family, where were they? She hadn't even heard from Ron since they'd all parted ways at the end of the previous school year; his name was probably in that little book as well come to think about it. An overwhelming urge came over her to look for the little book but she knew it'd be in vain as it would likely be on one of Scabior's men at all times, especially since they were out snatching. She felt the need to know though, the need to know if any of her friends had been snatched. Lacie pulled the duvet over her head and cried into the pillow that smelt so strongly of Scabior.


	6. Chapter 6

He brought his finger up to his lips, silencing his men at once as they all listened, waiting for their orders. Scabior knew what he was doing as he sniffed the air and a mixture of human scents faintly hit him.

"They're close," He spoke softly before gesturing at Greyback and Arsenius to go one way whilst he and Balfour went the other. Scabior was good at what he did. Very good indeed. He had a knack for picking up and remembering a person's scent and well the chase, the chase was what made it fun for him. He personally rarely used magic when he went after his victims just because it added to the adrenalin rush it gave him. They'd been doing this job several months though since the ministry had fallen, and well it wasn't the same anymore. At the beginning they'd caught at least three a day either in Diagon Alley, the forest or by them speaking the taboo. But now, now it was difficult. Most people knew of the taboo and avoided Voldemort's name and the rest knew where they could hide undetected. It wasn't going to be long though until Scabior caught his next mudblood.

* * *

Castor had called into the tent asking Lacie if she wanted anymore food throughout the day but she ignored his calls, lying in the darkness of the tent alone. Night had fallen and Scabior and the others still hadn't returned and without him she had no way to light the bulb. She stayed bundled up in the duvet though, having nothing to do but sleep. Lacie had taken off her jeans in discomfort hours previously and lay curled in a ball, eyes still puffy from the amount of crying she'd done. She sniffled and fought back more tears every time the thought of losing someone she cared about popped into her head.

Scabior happily returned that night with a pocket full of gold. They had managed to snatch two younger mudblood boys and though it wasn't much, it was something. Lacie didn't want to face them though. She didn't want to face _him_. She wanted to just be able to open her eyes and be back in her bedroom, or back at Hogwarts where she knew that even though she wasn't always happy there, she was safe for the most part. Lacie lay thinking about the past six, nearly seven years that she'd been at Hogwarts. She'd been alone for so long but was lucky to have had people appear when she'd needed them the most. Draco had been there for her when Justin threatened her, Ron had been there when Draco's true intentions were unearthed and Snape had always been there when she had had no one at all. But now, now she was living with four murderous men and a werewolf and even if it had been Draco's intention to keep her safe, Lacie feared that he'd made a very bad decision.

She could hear his footsteps as he entered the tent, hearing them get closer and closer until his hand rested on her side through the duvet.

"What's up with you?" His voice was teasing, not harsh or accusing. She stayed quiet and still as he pulled the duvet from over her.

"Don't ignore me princess," He said as he ran his hand down the side of her body. Lacie shivered slightly, her body tense as she turned her head to look at him.

"I want to go home," She stated, her voice as weak as her position.

"You know you can't," He said simply before turning from her. "You're 'aving some food with us anyway so get dressed - and if you don't, I'll just drag you out there in your underwear – I'm sure they'd love that."

Lacie pulled her jeans on once Scabior had left the tent. She followed soon after him, shivering as her skin prickled with the nights cool breeze. The weather was getting colder as the days went on but the fire that the men were sat around managed to keep them happy as they conversed and joked, bottles of cheap alcohol in their hands whilst Castor prepared the meal for them.

"Come on," Scabior uttered when he noticed her lingering, just watching them. She hesitated slightly before going over and sitting next to Scabior on the log. He just looked at her as she sat with her arms crossed, staring back at him emotionlessly, silently challenging him.

"Here," He said, offering his own bottle of beer to her. Lacie just stared at it, last time she'd accepted a drink from someone she nearly ended up paralysed.

"No thank you," Scabior narrowed his eyes however and thrust his drink at her again.

"Take it," He said, his calm tone disappearing. Lacie hesitated before reaching her hand out, taking the bottle into her petite hands. Scabior grabbed another bottle for himself before watching Lacie, waiting for her to take a sip after he'd taken a swig himself.

"I don't like it," She uttered but Scabior just rolled his eyes at her.

"Bet you've had nothing like it," Scabior just uttered, "Drink." Lacie brought the bottle to her lips with a shaky hand before taking a sip that made her gag slightly.

"It's not that bad," He grinned at her, encouraging her to drink more. She was thankful when he finally became bored and turned his attention from her and started talking to Arsenius.

Lacie retreated into her mind, the bottle hanging limply from her fingertips as she rested her elbows on her knees. She became lost in the flames that danced; trying to think of ways that she could escape without anyone noticing. She knew she was going to have to wait until her foot was fully healed, she needed as much advantage as she could get seeing as she was wandless. If only she could get that little book of his and find out if there was anyone that she could try and find – to see if her parents had even managed to get away or not.

"Lacie, hey Lace!" She jumped as two fingers clicked in front of her face, pulling her out of her reverie. Her eyes met Castor's, a small smile on his lips as he pushed the tin of food at her.

"Thanks," She uttered, taking it into her petite hands, groaning inside when she saw it was the same kind of broth as they had had the previous night. Her stomach was knotted into a tight ball from hunger though so she ate it quickly, trying not to let it touch her tongue as it went down. She felt fragile and exposed as she placed her bowl on the floor, wrapping her arms around herself and staring into the fire again. Mindless conversation flowed between the snatchers but it was nothing of importance to the young girl who couldn't pull her mind from the whereabouts of her parents and friends.

"Come on beautiful, smile a little," She glanced to Scabior as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. She could already smell the cheap beer on his breath, cringing as he squeezed her shoulders tightly. "Come on," He spoke, patting his knee.

"I'm okay," She uttered, eyes glancing down to the ground. Scabior sighed, suddenly gripping her chin and forcing her to meet his eyes.

"I thought you realised last night that you don't get a choice," Her eyes had widened as a tremor shot down her spine. She stood before reluctantly sitting down in his lap. Scabior pulled her back until she was flush against him, his arms draping around her either side. She stared down at his bare arms, not having noticed when he had shed his coat and military waist coat. His arms were tan and muscular as one hand gripped her leg and the other held a bottle.

"Good girl," He uttered.

* * *

The night wore on as the Snatcher's drank, banter passing between them and a fight between Arsenius and Greyback almost starting as the former became a little bit too mouthy for the werewolf's liking. Scabior had interfered then, anger shooting through him as he cursed both participants without a second thought. Lacie was terrified. She felt as if she was teetering on the edge, not wanting to make a wrong move as the alcohol flowed. Scabior became more handsy to Lacie's discomfort. She felt like she had been thrown into a mix of Justin and Draco's claws as he rubbed her leg.

"You smell amazing," She heard him slur into her ear at one point, his hands then groping at her waist, pulling her flush against himself with a moan. She couldn't understand how he had come to this conclusion when she hadn't bathed in two days and her clothes were lathered in dirt.

"You're scaring her Scabior," Castor spoke, soft eyes watching the tears in Lacie's with concern. Scabior's attention snapped to him, glaring as he caught the way he was looking at her.

"And you have a problem with tha'?" Scabior growled, pushing Lacie from his lap and standing, towering over the man three years younger than himself. Castor pushed himself up also, holding his hands out defensively.

"Hey mate, I was just saying," He backed off slightly but Scabior followed his steps.

"An' you 'ave no right to," Lacie didn't like the way things were going whilst the other snatches just fell silent, watching the scene unfold. Castor had done her no wrong and she could see the fear in his eyes as his leader towered over him. She reached out, touching Scabior's arm gently.

"Stay away from 'er," He hissed suddenly before turning and grabbing a startled Lacie's wrist. Scabior proceeded to drag her away from the fire, back towards his tent.

"No, no wait, Scabior, wait," She yelped out in a panic at the way he pushed and pulled at her. He slammed her against one of the posts inside, pain biting at her back and stinging the back of her head. He pushed himself onto her, kissing her roughly as she tried to resist.

"You're mine, understand?" He gripped her jaw in his hand when she tried to fight him, causing her to still, eyes wide as tears dripped down her cheeks. His fingers dug into her skin as she forced herself to nod, his hands immediately going to her hips and his lips to her neck. A mix of sweat and alcohol met her nose as she attempted to jerk herself away to no avail.

Her chest heaved as she sobbed as the memories of Justin flooded back to her, realising it was all going to happen again. Panic flooded her veins and all she could see was red as she quickly raised her knee, slamming it into Scabior's crotch. Her vision cleared as the snatcher yelled in pain, taking a couple of steps backwards and crippling over. Lacie was frozen to the spot, her eyes wide in fear as she realised what she had done.

"You fucking bitch," She faintly heard before she bolted, stumbling slightly as she exited the tent. A jinx flew past her, missing her by a millimeter, grabbing the attention of the snatchers still around the fire. Greyback immediately stood, the other's following his step as they saw Scabior exit his tent, anger painted across his features.

"What are you waitin' for, stop 'er!" Lacie's heart hammered as she kept running, her foot pounding with pain with every step she took. Regret poured through her body alongside terror. She screamed as a tripping jinx hit her making her hit the ground hard. Twigs scratched at her skin as she tried to get up but to no avail.

"No!" She screamed out as two hands grabbed her from behind, dragging her to her feet. She squirmed and slammed her head back, the hold on her immediately ceasing with a loud groan. Lacie wasn't expecting them to let go so easily and stumbled before she found her footing again. Her vision was blurred by tears as she ran, not taking in where she was going and just running blindly into the forest.

Her breath was taken from her, winding her as a blunt force barreled into her, pushing her to the ground again. She looked up to see Greyback above her, a sickening grin on his face. She attempted to scramble away only for him to drag her back with ease. Scabior soon caught up, the alcohol affecting his running and his senses.

"Hold her up," He growled. Lacie shook as sobs wracked her body. Her hair stuck up in every direction, her face soaked from tears.

"No! No! I'm sorry Scabior, I'm sorry!" She yelled in desperation before being cut off as his fist connected with her cheek, two angry red gashes being left behind from his stag ring. He punched her hard in the stomach next causing her to cripple over in Greyback's hold. She coughed violently, spitting blood onto the floor as she looked up into Scabior's eyes. He gripped her jaw hard again before moving a couple of inches from her face.

"Pull anything like tha' again and I'll fucking kill you!" He yelled before telling Greyback to take her back to his tent before he stalked off in the other direction, still fuming.

Lacie lay limply on the bed sheets that were soaked red beneath her head. Her cheek had failed to stop bleeding and she had had to spit blood from her mouth several times from where her teeth had cut her cheek when he had hit her. She felt like her life was over as she lay on her side, staring at the side of the tent. Scabior returned eventually but neither spoke a word.

He silently stripped off before walking over to her. He cleaned the bed of blood before kneeling in front of her. She stared past him with empty eyes as he siphoned the blood from her cheek, only stopping the bleeding without healing the cuts. Scabior climbed into the other side of the bed, turning the light off and falling asleep almost straight away. Lacie however continued to stare off into the darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N First I just want to thank the people that have reviewed and followed this story so far, I really appreciate it. Secondly I want to apologise for taking so long to update; I'm not really keen on this chapter at all but I've tried editing it many times and nothings really changed. There are lots of important bits about Lacie and Draco's past though. I hope you enjoy it at least a little :)_

* * *

Snatching was a monotonous job, the same thing every day and it wasn't guaranteed that they would actually snatch anyone on any given day. Lacie stayed behind at camp bored out of her mind when they went out, always being left with one of them to keep an eye on her. Scabior's mood swings were getting worse as the weeks went on, snapping at Lacie when she reminded him that her foot needed tending to, hitting her when she said something that he didn't like. She was constantly covered in bruises and when Draco cancelled their first meeting she couldn't help but cry; she needed a familiar face to keep her going.

It was two weeks in when one morning she awoke to Scabior shaking her. She looked up at him in surprise, blinking tiredly in confusion; he had never woken her before, usually she awoke and he was already gone.

"Draco wants to meet us, come on, get up," He uttered causing her to groan slightly.

"Idonwanna," Her voice was muffled by the pillow causing Scabior to chuckle.

"You 'ave to." She sat up, yawning widely before pulling herself up. Pulling on her jeans and then her boots she looked to Scabior expectantly. He considered her for a second before attempting to flatten her hair.

"You'll do," He uttered before he grabbed her wrist and left the tent with her in tow. They left the borders of the campsite before disapparating.

They landed in an alleyway unfamiliar to Lacie who barely even had the chance to glance around herself before Scabior pulled her after him. The streets were quiet except for the few businessmen and women that rushed to work at those early hours. Scabior stopped suddenly outside of a small café with grease stained windows. He looked at the sign for a couple of seconds before peering through the window and heading for the door. Lacie's stomach lurched as she saw the blonde sat at a table in the corner. He rose like a gentlemen as soon as they walked up, offering his hand to Scabior in a very business-like manner.

"Malfoy," Scabior uttered in a greeting, shaking the blonde's hand before they both sat. Lacie felt like she was sitting back down at the Slytherin table at Hogwarts as she felt Draco's eyes burning into her as she sat next to Scabior and opposite Draco. A thin teenage boy came over to the table, asking if she and Scabior wanted anything to which Scabior just muttered two black coffees before he disappeared again.

"She's a mess," Lacie cringed at the words and jumped slightly as Draco reached across the table and brought his hand to her cheek, lightly touching the two scars from Scabior's ring. He then took her chin gently and tilted it up, looking at the bruises lining her neck. "What the hell have you been doing to her?" He glanced at her clothes in distaste. Scabior had taken her to a nearby river to wash herself as well as her clothes a couple of days a week but without any proper soap, the stains from the mud wouldn't budge and magic only did so much.

"If she steps out of line she has to be punished, I'm sure you would do the same," Scabior shrugged before accepting the two coffees that the gangly waiter brought over.

"You obviously know nothing about me snatcher," Draco hissed, glaring at Scabior.

"See it from my point of view yeah? A burden is thrown to you and she just ends up causing more trouble than she's worth even after you've warned 'er and then she takes up precious working time-"

"I'm paying you-"

"Yeah but me an' my men aren't gonna to be able to live on just keeping 'er alive for you are we? We still gotta snatch," Draco held his tongue in defeat and looked at Lacie again, eyeing her as she stared into her coffee. The smell was soothing her; it smelt like breakfasts at home when her father used to drink the strongest of coffees, the rich smell filling the whole house.

"Have any of them touched you sexually Lace?" Lacie looked up with wide surprised eyes, not expecting to be pulled out of her reverie.

"No, of course not," She stumbled out, surprised to find her voice. Draco leant closer to her before softening his voice.

"Are you telling me the truth Lacie or do I have to use Veritaserum again?" He spoke down to her like she was a child and Lacie couldn't help but feel anger burn through her intensely.

"I'm telling the truth," She muttered before narrowing her eyes surprising both of the men at the table. "You're unbelievable, you know that?" Draco was stunned into silence. He knew he shouldn't have brought up the potion but he needed to make sure she was alright in that manner of speaking at least.

"Why are you even acting like you fucking care Draco? I'm not yours. I'm not your _pet_!" Lacie was doing her best not to yell as the misplaced group was already attracting the unwanted attention of the staff. Scabior sat back slightly, amused as he saw this fiery side of Lacie; every time he had gone up against her she had ended up a quivering wreck instead.

"I never stopped caring about you."

"I don't know why you bother; you ruined everything a long time ago so just give up! I nearly ended up paralysed because of you Draco and I'm never going to forgive you for that." She glanced to Scabior, suddenly remembering his presence, "And then this! You hand me over to a bunch of murderous men and a fucking werewolf and you expect me to be grateful!"

"You would've rather have gone to Azkaban? You wouldn't have lasted a day in there," Draco hissed back with just as much anger. He was putting so much on the line for her and she was playing the ungrateful brat in his eyes. "And as for Justin, none of that was my fault."

"He targeted me because of _you_," She spoke in disbelief, "and your friends just made it so much easier."

"Well tell you what Scabior, do whatever the fuck you want with her, what does it even matter anymore." Draco pushed his chair back and stood, having turned his full attention to the snatcher. "I'll be in contact." Scabior merely nodded amused as Draco threw his money onto the table before storming out of the café without another word.

There was silence between the snatcher and his captive as he moved and took Draco's seat, eyeing Lacie who still looked stunned yet angry at Draco's final words. He pocketed the galleons and ignored the looks from the few other customers in the café.

"Well that was interesting," he commented before beckoning the teenager waiter over and ordering two full English breakfasts. "So who is Justin? You failed to mention a Justin when you were telling me about you and Draco." Lacie blinked, unemotional before looking to Scabior, shaking her head slightly.

"No one," She mumbled, sipping her coffee, wincing as it burnt her tongue and throat. Scabior sighed. It felt strange to her as if Scabior had suddenly appeared again after disappearing behind her wall of rage.

"I know we're in a public place but I'm not afraid to strangle you again, I can easily kill anyone that questions me."

"He tried to rape me."

"Oh," Scabior didn't want to admit that he was surprised before something suddenly clicked in his head. He thought back to the amount of times he had tried to touch her and the way that every time she would freak out completely, going into a fit of tears mixed with weak anger. "That's why you resist me…" He uttered, blinking at her in surprise.

"I guess," She mumbled, not wanting to voice that it was also because he scared the life out of her and she seriously didn't want him anywhere near her. Scabior was so wrapped up in himself it was unbelievable.

"You blame Draco though?" He questioned curiously, realising he had never really just sat down and talked to the girl before – not that she would have told him anything straight out anyway, she always needed coercion.

"Justin only started to take an interest in me because he thought I was interested in Draco and was jealous or something, I don't know. Draco forced me to go to the Yule ball and it was there that I was told about the bet. Justin had poisoned my drink and when I left he tried to rape me, Snape found us," Lacie mumbled out, hoping he'd be happy with her answer. She didn't want to have his hands wrapped around her throat again, it was a terrifying feeling. "Snape saved me."

"Snape?" He spoke in surprise as plates were placed in front of them. Scabior immediately got stuck in whilst Lacie just stared at her plate before moving the food around a bit, not really in the mood to eat. She was accustomed to her stomach being so empty that she felt sick from the greasy smell.

"Yeah, he was alright with me. He let me make potions in his classroom in my spare blocks."

"And this kid's name? What did you say it was?"

"Justin. Justin Chanmot." Scabior almost laughed. He looked up at the girl opposite himself wondering how on Earth such a little thing could surprise him so much in such a short amount of time. He knew the name. He had even met the boy briefly. He debated for a moment whether to tell her that he knew that he was a snatcher now but refrained, thinking of how much of a headache it cause for himself. Justin had served his time in Azkaban, it hadn't been long but when he had left the Ministry had approached him; either go back to Azkaban or become a snatcher. That was how they were all recruited more or less unless anyone willingly stepped up – and that was very rare to say the least. Scabior had been out of Azkaban for quite some time but a Ministry official had unfortunately caught him in a bar fight down Diagon Alley and had given him the ultimatum. He had argued it was merely a petty fight but she wouldn't have anything of it, simply asking him what his decision was. Scabior found that he had a knack for snatching however – a natural hunter. His sense of smell was impeccable, he had always known that but he had never thought he could use it like a blood hound would, to hunt down his prey.

"I take it you miss Hogwarts?" He pulled himself out of his thoughts, glancing back to Lacie before carrying on eating.

"I guess in a way. It hasn't held many happy memories for me, I was invisible until last year and then so much bad stuff happened. I miss the lessons I guess, I really did love potions."

"I was never too great at it, I preferred charms." He registered the surprise on her face as Lacie stared at him, confused at the fact that the snatcher seemed to be opening up to her. "Anyway, eat, not like we get a meal like this often."

"I'm not really hungry."

"Don't be stupid, just eat, we aven't got all day." The two fell quiet as Lacie reluctantly started to eat, finding her appetite more though a question was still burning at the back of her mind.

"Where were you last night?" She questioned quietly, not knowing if it was her place to question his whereabouts or not.

"Why?"

"I just woke up and you weren't there," As much as the man scared her he also offered her protection against everything else. Her life was in his hands and when he had suddenly disappeared on her it panicked her slightly. Even with his short temper and all of the beatings she still felt safer in his presence than that of Greyback's.

"We were snatching. We need to start doing it at night. We're not getting enough money just doing it in the day."

"Oh, okay." They both finished up and paid before leaving.


	8. Chapter 8

_Thank you for the reviews for the last chapter, I really appreciate it :) Scabior likes to yo-yo where his moods as concerned :)_

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They disapparated from the same alleyway that they had arrived in, Lacie feeling ill as she was pulled alongside Scabior. She stared around herself in confusion as they appeared in a street that she recognised.

"What's going on?" Lacie turned to Scabior in confusion. In silence he gripped her wrist, walking with her down the path. She didn't want to get her hopes up but she couldn't ignore the mounting excitement as they stopped in front of her home.

"Pack anything you might need, we won't be coming back again so don't forget anything," Lacie smiled brightly rushing to her front door, Scabior close on her trail. She stilled however as she pushed the door open and stepped inside; the bannister rail had been blown into bits along with the kitchen door. Her initial happiness disappeared quickly as she glanced around her destroyed hallway. She bolted upstairs suddenly, eyes frantic and a sob catching in her throat as she saw her bedroom door blown off of its hinges.

'_She still might've gotten away,' _She tried to reason with herself, willing the lump in her throat to disappear.

"How did you escape?" Lacie had forgotten about Scabior, turning around to face him as he looked around her room.

"Mum was blocking the door with spells, she told me to disapparate." She didn't want to show Scabior that she was weaker than he had already seen but she couldn't stop the tears that welled in her eyes. She tried to choke them back but to no avail as she glanced back at the splintered door.

"Do you know what happened to them?" She uttered, turning to the snatcher.

"No." Scabior simply spoke, being taken aback as she suddenly threw herself at him in a rage, hitting his chest.

"Don't lie to me!" Lacie found herself yelling as she hit her fists against Scabior. He remained calm however, simply grabbing Lacie's wrists in an iron tight grip.

"You're one of them," She whimpered, tears rolling down her cheeks as she still tried to struggle and hit the man in front of her, "You must know, you must!"

"Lacie," she stilled, looking up to him, "I don't know wha' happened. When we get back to camp I can tell you if they were definitely snatched but that's it-"

"But-"

"After tha' it's up to the ministry what 'appens to them, we 'ave no say." A sob ripped through her as the possibilities raced through her mind. She tried to pull out of Scabior's grip but he wasn't having any of it; he rolled his eyes at her before pulling her into his chest.

"Calm down," He muttered, holding her to him tightly, giving her no choice as he wrapped his arms around her. She sobbed into his chest, finding herself gripping onto his coat, knuckles white. His scent surrounded Lacie, clouding her mind as she burrowed into his chest, shaking. She couldn't think straight, her mind filled with grief. He stood with her in his arms patiently though, waiting until she calmed down, even rocking her slightly.

"Come on, you need to pack," He spoke softly. She nodded slightly against him, pulling back as she rubbed her eyes. He caught her hand however stopping her from going too far for the second. She looked to him with puffy eyes in confusion until he tilted her chin up and kissed her gently. Scabior released her completely after that, turning his back on her and sitting on her bed before telling her again that she needed to pack.

Lacie immediately grabbed one of the bags from her wardrobe before pausing for a second.

"I need a wand," She finally managed to squeak out gaining raised eyebrows from Scabior.

"And why is that?"

"For an undetectable extension charm…" He studied her for a second before beckoning her over. He pulled his wand out and aimed it at the bag before muttering the spell beneath his breath. She walked away without another word, going over to her wardrobe and throwing her clothes in quickly. Grabbing a photo album from the top of her wardrobe she carefully placed it into her bag. Her dressing table was laden with products but she quickly picked out the ones she knew would be useful – she stopped dead however when she noticed a photograph of herself, Ron and Neville. With a quick glance at Scabior she noticed him to be preoccupied before she quickly shoved it into one of the drawers. She grabbed some books from her cabinet before turning to Scabior again.

"I'm going to get some things from the bathroom," He nodded briefly at her, distracted. A voice in her head kept telling her to disapparate but she couldn't bring herself to try without a wand. The beatings just kept leaping into her head and she knew Scabior would eventually capture her again if she managed it successfully so would that tiny taste of freedom even be worth all of the pain in the end?

As soon as she stepped into the bathroom she stopped dead. The girl staring back at her was unrecognisable; her hair looked dry and uncared for and her skin was nowhere near what it had once been. Her rosy glow had gone leaving her a pale mess with purple and yellow bruises covering patches of skin. Lacie stepped closer, seeing the garish scars on her cheek for the first time, reaching up and touching them gently with her fingertips. She then traced the dark circles beneath her eyes before stepping back again, holding back a sob as she lifted her top and saw the bruises across her hips from a completely different angle.

She quickly reached forward, ripping open the medicine cabinet and pushing the stranger from sight as she busied herself with throwing muggle medicines into her bag along with her toiletries. She grabbed her brush from where she had left it by the sink last time she had used it and threw that in as well. Turning and leaving all she could see was the imprinted image of her new broken self.

"You're good," She looked up in confusion as she entered her bedroom, being pulled from her thoughts.

"Excuse me?"

"Your pictures – ya pretty good at drawing," She finally noticed what Scabior had been intently looking through and her heart stopped. Lacie rushed forwards and snatched her sketchbook from beneath Scabior's nose; it was filled with sketches and drawings of everything that had surrounded her at Hogwarts from her classmates and her professors to the animals and ghosts that roamed the school and towards the end she knew that there were plenty of drawings of Ron, Neville and the others.

"They're… they're private!" She gasped, stumbling over her words as she quickly stuffed the book into her bag, barely noticing the look of surprise and suspicion that registered on Scabior's face.

"Whatever you say love," Scabior murmured before pulling himself up off of the bed, "You done?" Lacie nodded before he dragged her downstairs, pulling her from the house before she could say another word. They disapparated almost immediately, landing back in the forest near their camp.


	9. Chapter 9

Lacie lay in Scabior's bed that night reading one of her books. She felt at peace wrapped in the duvet, the scent of Scabior actually comforting her slightly. She was thankful that he had left her to her own devices that night, not forcing her to join the others like he usually did. She glanced up as he entered the tent though, much earlier than she was expecting. Placing her book down she gave him a slight quirk of a smile as he walked over, sitting on the edge of the bed beside her.

"'Horncroft' isn't it?" She glanced to his hands where she saw the little black book. Lacie's smile instantly disappeared, barely nodding her head before Scabior started flicking through the pages.

"Jack and Maria?"

"Yes," Lacie's heart hammered in her chest as she pulled herself onto her knees, closer to Scabior as she tried to see.

"They're in the ministries hands," He spoke so softly that Lacie didn't believe him; he was acting so out of character.

"Let me see," She reached forward and took the book from his hands, her heart immediately dropping when he didn't even attempt to stop her. Sure enough she found their names with lines through them, a tiny ministry stamp beside each one. So many emotions flooded her in that moment and immediately she found herself going to flick through the pages in search of names that she knew. He gently reached over though, pulling it out of her grasp as she fell back onto her heels defeated.

"I need to help them," She uttered, looking to Scabior who was sat patiently waiting for her to break down. "I need to save them." Lacie jumped up from the bed, pacing slightly as ideas raced through her mind.

"Take me to the ministry! Yes! And then I'll go up against them, I'll save my parents, I'll get them out alive!"

"Lacie," Scabior stood up, "You wouldn't come out alive, they'd kill you on the spot-"

"I'm stronger than they think! They won't expect it-"

"And then wha'? Even if ya did somehow get past all of the security there is no way you would be able to actually find ya parents. They might've been taken to Azkaban by now… it depends how bad they see their crimes to be."

"Crimes!" Lacie scoffed, "Crimes! All they did was live their lives discriminating against no one! It's you people that should be in Azkaban! Not us!" Lacie seethed, preparing herself for the blow as Scabior stood from the bed, walking towards her. Anger melted away from his features though his eyes were still hardened as he held her arms gently.

"I did my time love and then I had no choice but to do this. We're not all as bad as ya think we are," He pushed some of the hair out of her face, hooking it behind her ears. "Keeping you alive an' safe is what matters." Lacie eyed him carefully, wondering what the hell he was playing at with the sudden personality change.

"You know you're starting to sound a lot like Draco right now," She uttered, taking a step away from him, her eyebrows knotted together in confusion. "I think you should back off."

"I am tryin' to be nice-"

"Don't be, it doesn't suit you."

"You preferred it when I hit you?"

"I understood you then," She uttered, walking back over to the bed and sitting down on the edge of it. Scabior simply stared at her, the anger inside of him growing stronger at her cocky responses.

"I was tryin' to be nice," He growled out again, walking towards her and grabbing her chin. He was trying so hard not to lash out, his grip tightening in an attempt to control himself.

"Well next time just harden up a little bit more and then I'll actually believe it's sincere," She uttered, shoving his hand away and going to lay down on her side. Lacie yelped out however as he pushed her onto her back, slapping her hard. She didn't cry this time though, she didn't even cower. She stared back at him defiantly, challenging his next move.

"You are so ungrateful," He growled, throwing one knee over her waist and straddling her, holding her down. "I've done so much for ya when I didn't 'ave to."

"Oh I'm sorry, did I not thank you for the bruises? For the torment and the terror that runs through me every time I see that look in your eyes that tells me you could snap at any second. I am _so so_ sorry-" Her words were cut off as he gripped her neck tightly, purposely pressing on old bruises causing pain to shoot through Lacie. Tears came to her eyes though she willed them not to.

"You know nothin' of fear!" He growled, pushing off of her and pacing slightly as Lacie laughed lowly.

"Did I strike a nerve? Did something positively awful happen to you Scabior? Oh I wish I had been there to witness it-" Scabior's fist suddenly slammed down into her stomach. Her breath was forced from her as she curled into a ball, coughing as the pain just seemed to stretch on forever.

"I should send ya to the ministry, ya not worth the time or the effort," He stared at her before turning and leaving her alone in the tent again.

Silence met her ears as she allowed herself to gasp and writhe in pain now that he had gone. She tried to control her tears but found herself to become a sobbing wreck as everything collapsed around her. She had lost her parents and there was nothing she could do about it, what was the point in carrying on in a losing battle? She had nothing to lose.

Lacie hugged her pillow to herself, realising that after all of her years at Hogwarts it had taken a Snatcher being nice to bring out the Slytherin in her.


End file.
